Tag: continuous glucose monitor

I finally got the paperwork all lined out to get a new CGM! That’s Continuous Glucose Monitor for you non-D’s out there.

We weren’t sure it was gonna happen after my former supply company suddenly told me (after I called to ask where my shipment of supplies was!) that they were no longer “participating” with my insurance and I’d have to find another company.

ARGH! So, let’s don’t get me started on that again, but ANYway, with some help from my endo’s office and his diabetes care advocate, I was able to find both a pump supply company to take care of all the necessaries to use my insulin pump AND another company through which I could get a CGM.

Since I apparently (I’m not sure how) hadn’t met much of our $1,500 deductible, our out-of-pocket for this thing was pretty steep. Scary, even. You guys know what I mean! Staying healthy is way more expensive than it should be and it’s many times higher if you have a chronic disease! UGH! (there I go again! I may need an extra blood pressure pill by the time I’m done with this!) HA!

If it weren’t for the upcoming (TWELVE DAYS! EEEEEK!) trip to Orlando for MasterLab 2016, I’m not sure we would have bitten off this extra debt, but having this will help both Tommy and I feel better about it all around. Honestly, I am positive I could keep up with testing, but if by chance (and that’s a pretty high chance with this new, scary-ish experience for me of flying and traveling alone) I start to have unexpected lows due to a heightened emotional state, I’d much rather be able to be warned that my sugar is dropping than to get suspicious that I might be low or, God forbid, get into the shape where I really needed help. Sometimes a low will happen just that fast and especially when in a new situation, different surroundings, unfamiliar events and such. With hypo-unawareness, you start concentrating on something else, and the teeny, sometimes-symptoms you DO occasionally have can easily be missed and you’re in trouble before you know it.

We’d like to avoid that if at all possible! And so…today, my Dexcom 5G will be delivered!! YAY!!

Ha ha! “FDA Approved!” An old graphic, obviously…

This is different than the CGM I had early last year. (until the included supply of sensors ran out and my former insurance wouldn’t cover more) This one is a stand-alone CGM, which I feel a little ambivalent about. I really liked that the Enlite transmitter would send all the info straight to my pump and would automatically shut it off for 2 hours if I dropped below 60 in my sleep. However, the Dexcom seems to be preferred from most of the reviews I’ve read. It’s the most accurate CGM on the market right now and with the capability to bluetooth to my phone (and send info to whomever else I choose via an app — IOS-dependant, of course) I think I can learn to live with it. Who knows, I may even like it better.

Basic workings of a Continuous Glucose Monitor System…

We shall see! I’ll update you later! Right now, I’m heading up to the baby kids’ place to tidy up some before they arrive home in a little more than 24 hours! Thank God!

Have an awesome day (& if you have a Dex G5, tell me your opinions and tips, please??!?!)

Happy Friday, folks! I’m getting a late start, but that’s been my norm the past few weeks. I won’t bore you with how flippin’ tired I have been and how much I’ve been sleeping, but trust me. It’s A LOT and I’m getting really…*heh*… tired of it. *psh!*

In other news… I just read this article about a study to see if more information (ie: blood sugar testing ..I assume via CGM) can improve the life and health of PWDs. My first thought?

DUH!?!!!

As you probably recall from previous posts, we purchased out of pocket (we’re still paying for it, actually) a CGM transmitter for me early last year in the hopes that our then-insurance company would soon cover them so I could get sensors to use the CGM.

That was a dream. It never happened, so when the four sensors that came with the transmitter were done, I had to put the thing in the cabinet and there it sits. Pretty sick feeling to send a payment for something you paid over 5k for and only got to use a month. Ugh!

So I’m looking forward to getting the CGM, in case you didn’t realize. *ha ha* I know they’re not perfect, but people, when you are walking around, helping move heavy furniture, thinking you’re fine as frog hair only to test because your honey thinks “You look kinda pale, hun.. why don’t you test?” and find that your sugar is 27?? That is NOT a good feeling! It’s terrifying to know that you can’t tell when your sugar is dropping. To clarify for you non-Ds, a low is more of an emergency situation most of the time. You can drop so low, or so quickly…or BOTH that you COULD DIE from it!!

Did you catch that? I could DIE because I am unable to tell when my sugar is falling. My body no longer sends me signals to warn me that I need to eat something or suspend my pump and chug a can of Coke or scream for Tommy to come and help me until I begin to feel that being-pulled-out-of-myself feeling that I can only imagine means I’m about to pass out. It FEELS like I’m about to die. Seriously. I detest that feeling. It’s terrifying and I’m looking forward to not dealing with that, not having to worry when I’m by myself somewhere or when I’m driving.

Is more information important for people with type one diabetes? You bet your bottom dollar it is!! Why do we need a study to prove that? I guess because insurance companies are still denying CGMs to people who have documented hypo-unawareness and doctors’ letters saying their patients need them. Because people out there still don’t understand how T1D affects us or how serious it is. (remember me telling you my friend thought because I had a pump, that “took care of everything” and I really didn’t have to “do” anything regarding diabetes??!!)

So yeah, information is crucial. Knowing what our bodies are doing with the replacement hormone we inject ourselves with daily in order to live is kinda important. Knowing whether our blood sugar is too high or too low or just right is vital to our safety, not to mention the safety of our children or YOU, in the case of driving or operating machinery. Think about it. If YOU didn’t know your body was doing something…for instance, if your body didn’t recognize that it was blind or deaf, do you think that might cause a problem?

That’s silly, you say? The only reason it’s silly is because you can visibly see (or not, as the case may be!) when a blind person needs help or a deaf person needs assistance. It’s not at all visible with diabetes. All our dysfunction is on the inside, but it affects the very system that controls our entire metabolism!

*sigh* I’m thankful for the technology of CGMs. I’m looking forward to having it and feeling more confident and safe when I’m by myself or with people who may not understand diabetes enough to help me if I needed it.

I’m curious what this study will determine. I can’t eve imagine it concluding anything other than more info equals more power to control our disease. At least more ability to keep ahead of it!

What do you think? If you’re not a PWD, have you or are you learning anything more about T1D from these posts?? Please let me know. Interaction is like air for me!! Like the posts or comment!! I am dying to know what you guys think.